Robbie Williams and Harry Styles are just two of the biggest names in the trend, with millions of copies and hundreds of thousands of viewers on tour around the world. Former members of rising boy bands who chose solo careers to continue or even increase their success. For example, at the last summer festival in Lucca, Robbie Williams celebrated the first 25 years of his solo career. He started his career in the 90s as a member of Take That, which quickly became one of the most successful bands of the time. However, internal contrasts prompted him to leave the group already in 95, and then pursue a solo career. In 2010, after a 15-year hiatus, he returned to Take That to record the album Progress. The following year, he resumed his solo adventure, remaining, however, on good terms with the rest of the group and available for possible reunions and collaborations. Another speech for Justin Timberlake. After “Bye bye bye,” the pop star gradually distanced himself from *NSYNC. In 2002, a year after the release of Celebrity, the band announced an indefinite hiatus. That same year, Timberlake released the hit “Like I love you” and his debut album, Justified. * NSYNC reunited a few years ago to celebrate their star on the Walk of Fame, but when the group reunited at Coachella for Ariana Grande’s 2019 performance, scheduling conflicts prevented Timberlake from attending.
Another heavyweight among the ex-boy band soloists is Harry Styles. A few weeks ago we saw him at the RCF Arena in Campovolo in front of 100,000 spectators. The last act of a dazzling career. The One Direction experience came about almost by accident after Cowell saw Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne and Harry Styles show up at X Factor auditions as solo contestants. Their potential as a boy band quickly became apparent. However, Styles soon launched a solo career, releasing three albums and even becoming a movie star. Stepping back in time, we find Nick Carter’s Backstreet Boys, who are to this day the biggest-selling male group in the history of pop music. In 2002, Carter released his first solo album, Now or Never. But the Backstreet Boys never officially announced their breakup. Finally, an old acquaintance of pop music like Ricky Martin, who made a splash in the 80s with Menudo, the most famous Latin American boy group. Martin debuted his self-titled solo album in 1988, performed at the 1998 World Championships, and received a Grammy for Best Latin Pop Performance in 1999 with “Vuelve”. Her first single in English, “Livin’ la vida loca”, was an instant hit, as was her debut album, which hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. The rest is history. Like other pop stars who owe everything to the unstoppable drive of boy bands.